'Glee' star Michele recalls 'TV rejection'

Lea Michele has revealed that she was once turned away from TV auditions for being "too ethnic" and "not pretty enough".

The singer-actress told Entertainment Tonight that she had been rejected many times before landing her role in Glee.

She explained: "I came out to Los Angeles with the hopes of taking a break from New York and the stage and maybe getting a little guest spot.

"I was always told that I was too ethnic, or not pretty enough, or too much this or not enough of that."

However, Michele had a chance encounter with Glee's creator Ryan Murphy and later auditioned for the show.

She added: "I was working on Broadway in New York, and the Broadway strike happened, and my co-star was working on a pilot with Ryan Murphy out here in Los Angeles.

"I met Ryan... and we just had a great night talking about Barbara Streisand and our shared love for her and musical theatre and whatnot - and I never saw him ever again!"

Murphy later admitted that he had created the character of Rachel with the star "in mind".

Michele continued: "Glee was the first audition I went on in Los Angeles and Ryan was there, and I went, 'Do you remember me?' and he was like, 'Of course I remember you'. After going through the studio and the network, he then told me that he had written it with me in mind."